250 sex offenders off site for now

By Derrick DePledge
Advertiser Capitol Bureau

The state attorney general's office has temporarily removed more than 250 sex offenders from a state Web site over concerns about whether the Legislature intended that their photographs and home addresses be posted on the Internet.

Most of the sex offenders pulled from the site yesterday had been convicted of more than one instance of felony sexual assault in the third degree, such as inappropriate sexual contact.

Attorney General Mark Bennett said his office is reviewing the cases to determine which offenders were convicted of more than one felony as part of the same case and which were repeat offenders who had committed new crimes. Repeat offenders are clearly supposed to have their information posted on the Internet, but there is some confusion about offenders who might have been convicted of more than one felony involving the same victim or crime.

Bennett said he believes the law technically allows information on these offenders to be posted on the Internet, but he said he is not sure it is what lawmakers intended. "I think it's the right thing to do to review these individually," he said.

Information on the sex offenders will continue to be available to the public at the Hawai'i Criminal Justice Data Center and at select police stations during Bennett's review.

The law, signed by Gov. Linda Lingle on Monday, expands public access to Hawai'i's sex offender registry. Information on more than 1,400 convicted sex offenders was posted and the attorney general's office has reported a surge in traffic to the Web site.

An attorney on the staff of state Rep. Sylvia Luke, D-26th (Punchbowl, Pacific Heights, Nu'uanu Valley), one of the authors of the law, called the attorney general's office with his concerns on Tuesday.

Lawmakers had wanted to keep some lower-level sex offenders off the Web site so as not to link them publicly with violent or habitual offenders. The public would still be able to get information on these offenders through the Hawai'i Criminal Justice Data Center or at police stations.

Lois K. Perrin, the legal director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Hawai'i, said the state, in its rush to post the information, has undermined what lawmakers had intended.

"We have received a stream of phone calls all day from people who believe they were wrongly posted on the Internet," Perrin said. "The Internet allows hundreds of thousands of people access to this information.

"It's positively frightening."

Kelly Rosati, executive director of the Hawai'i Family Forum, said the law "represents all that is good with public policy, ensuring parents have access to the names and locations of Hawai'i's convicted registered sex offenders who may be living in their neighborhoods near their children."

Reach Derrick DePledge at 525-8070 or ddepledge@honoluluadvertiser.com.